The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Hydrangea plant botanically known as Hydrangea macrophylla and hereinafter referred to by the cultivar name ‘Kaho’.
The new cultivar originated in a controlled breeding program in Yokkaichi, Japan during June 2010. The objective of the breeding program was the development of Hydrangea cultivars that have double-type florets and compact growth habits.
The new Hydrangea cultivar is the result of cross-pollination. The female (seed) parent of the new cultivar is a proprietary Hydrangea macrophylla breeding selection coded 21-15, not patented, characterized by its double-type, lacecap, light pink-colored inflorescences, medium green-colored foliage, and vigorous, upright growth habit. The male (pollen) parent of the new cultivar is a proprietary Hydrangea macrophylla breeding selection coded 21-22, not patented, characterized by its single-type mophead, dark pink-colored inflorescences, dark green-colored foliage, and moderately vigorous, compact-upright growth habit. The new cultivar was discovered and selected as a single flowering plant within the progeny of the above stated cross-pollination during June 2012 in a controlled environment in in Yokkaichi, Japan.
Asexual reproduction of the new cultivar by softwood cuttings since June 2012 in Yokkaichi, Japan and Irvington, Ala. has demonstrated that the new cultivar reproduces true to type with all of the characteristics, as herein described, firmly fixed and retained through successive generations of such asexual propagation.